The Corruption Investigation Office Establishment Preparation Team Holds First Meeting... Committee Member Appointment Certificates Awarded and Preparation Status Discussed

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwangho Lee] The Preparatory Committee for the establishment of the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Office (Gongsoocheo) announced on the 10th that it will hold its first advisory committee meeting at 11 a.m. at the Government Seoul Office Building. It has been one month since the establishment committee was launched on the 10th of last month.

The meeting will include Hong Dong-gi, Director of Planning and Coordination at the Supreme Court, Shim Woo-jung, Director of Planning and Coordination at the Ministry of Justice, Lee Gyu-moon, Director of the Investigation Bureau at the National Police Agency, as well as officials from the Supreme Court, Ministry of Justice, and National Police Agency, along with private sector figures such as representatives from the Korean Bar Association.

The Supreme Prosecutors' Office was excluded from this attendance list. From the private sector, included were Yoo Han-beom, Secretary General of the Korea Transparency Organization, which was chaired by Kim Geo-seong, Senior Secretary for Civil Society at the Blue House, and Professor Yoon Dong-ho of Kookmin University, who wrote an article supporting the 'separation of investigation and prosecution' plan promoted by Minister of Justice Chu Mi-ae, which sparked controversy.

During the meeting, there will be the presentation of appointment letters to the committee members, reports on the progress of the Gongsoocheo establishment preparations, and in-depth discussions.

The Preparatory Committee stated, "We will continuously collect in-depth and diverse opinions through the advisory committee regarding the design of Gongsoocheo’s organization and overall systems, as well as the revision of related laws and regulations in preparation for the establishment of Gongsoocheo."

Meanwhile, Nam Ki-myeong, the head of the Preparatory Committee, who has faced controversy for securing a position as an outside director at Hana Bank just one month after his appointment, expressed his intention to hold both the Preparatory Committee head and outside director positions concurrently.

The Prime Minister's Office explained, "The recruitment of the outside director at Hana Bank was underway before the appointment of the Preparatory Committee head," and added, "The duties of the Preparatory Committee head are related to the preparation for the establishment of Gongsoocheo, such as the organization and staffing, and have no connection to supervision or sanctions against the bank." They also rebutted, saying, "Some media reports suggesting that the recruitment of the bank’s outside director is related to the Preparatory Committee head position are completely untrue."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.